I didn’t realize how much I had missed The Flash until now, and I’m so frustrated that we now have to wait a week for the next episode. Out Of Time was certainly built-up as being the season’s game-changing hour, but I did not expect so many events to transpire so soon.

I think I’m still trying to catch my breath after the episode’s final 10-15 minutes. In fact, I sort of wish I could be the Flash right now so I could go back in time to relive the excitement of those closing moments. Barry Allen ran so God-damn fast, he literally traveled back in time. And I pretty much had the same stunned reaction he had when he saw himself back on the streets again. At first I just assumed he was going to save the world (for the zillionth time), but watching the scene escalate and culminate with our hero travelling back in time was mind-blowing. Time-travel is clearly an element the series was going to touch on eventually because it’s an essential part of the comics, but I’m impressed that the show tackled it so early into its run. The possibilities now are just endless.

And even though the multiple promos and teasers over the past month indicated a huge Harrison Wells reveal, I was still in awe at how this particular storyline came to light. Tom Cavanagh and Carlos Valdes delivered an exceptional scene at STAR labs, and it was hard not to shed a tear when Cisco realized he was going to die. Their brutally honest conversation, Cisco’s gut-wrenching tears and Harrison’s reveal (he’s Eobard Thawne) truly changed the way I see the show. What was once a goofy superhero series abruptly spiraled into an outstanding masterpiece, making my time spent watching Gotham feel like a complete waste.

It’s not that I sincerely care so much about Cisco. He’s been the least likable and potentially easy-to-kill-off character on this show (Iris excluded because she’s busy wrecking other people’s love-lives). But seeing him finally face-off with Harrison was exactly what we needed to see. I just hope the time-traveling bit doesn’t completely erase every single development that happened this week (although that’s obviously the easy route to take). If the writers just write themselves out of this corner, I’ll definitely feel cheated on. I’m not recommending they kill Cisco again (no way is that happening), but give us SOMETHING next week.

As for the Iris/Barry drama, I genuinely hope we see much less of that in the upcoming episodes. The way the two of them flirted in front of their significant others was just douchey and obviously a contrived means of getting them to finally kiss in the end (but seriously, who has time for that when your own father is on a death sentence?). I was a little taken aback by Barry revealing his true identity to Iris, but it was satisfying to get the cat out of the bag once and for all—even if it was just for a few seconds (thanks again, time-travel).

Although everything was reset back to zero by the end of the episode, I’m still left with a strange feeling that episode 16 will be full of teases and near-misses that will most likely frustrate us.

Speedy Bits

– The Weather Wizard was this week’s villain and while he definitely raised the stakes with his tsunami bit, I didn’t really care for his character so much.

– The look on Caitlin’s face when she saw that Harrison escaped from his wheelchair was horrifying. But she is terrible at lying isn’t she?

– Amusing touch: Cisco bonding with Harrison over movies and telling him that he prefers to remain distant from his brother and family.

– Incredible visual effects this week with the tsunami, the lightning, the Flash running and more. This show sometimes feels like a big-budget film.

– The Harrison/Thawne reveal definitely put to rest any Eddie theories out there. On the other hand, it still doesn’t mean the guy can be completely trusted, right? Harrison’s comments on the subject itself should be suspicious enough.

– I don’t mind if Barry breaks up with Linda to be with Iris, but the chances of that happening are slim to zero. Why? Because this is season one.

– Harrison explaining to Cisco that he has been stuck in this timeline for a long time while Cisco listened in shock literally gave me the chills.

– The powerful scene between Cisco and Harrison apparently didn’t include Cisco crying in the script. That was just an impromptu reaction by Carlos Valdes as he played the scene and realized his character was about to die. Wow.

– Even Cisco’s “I can help you” was heartbreaking. His desperate attempts at staying alive without even trying to escape were amazing. Even more so was Harrison telling him he was like the son he never had.

– You just know that Barry is going to help that poor woman from missing her cab (because he’s Barry). But by changing the past, who knows what else is going to change.

– And yet… if we got an episode like this now, what the hell does the season finale have in store for us?

Red Blurs & Quotes

Cisco: What do you see?
Barry: A dead body.
Cisco: Barry, you’re in a morgue. You’re gonna have to be a little more specific than that.

Barry: I was running, and I turned and I saw myself. Or, I don’t know, another Flash running beside me.

Harrison: He’s taking being targeted by a revenge-seeking metahuman rather well, I must say.

Caitlin: Alright, fine, I will watch every episode of The Walking Dead with you.

Harrison: You and I have never been properly introduced. I am Eobar Thawne.
Cisco: Thawne. Like Eddie.
Harrison: Let’s call him a distant relative.

Harrison: It was never my intention to kill Nora. I was there to kill Barry.
Cisco: Why? You’re his friend! You’ve been teaching him how to—
Harrison: Go faster, I know. It’s a means to an end, and I’ll tell you why. Because I have been stuck here, marooned here, in this place for 15 long years. The Flash and the Flash’s speed is the key to returning to my world and to my time, and no one is going to prevent that from happening.
Cisco: I can help you.
Harrison: You’re smart, Cisco. But you’re not that smart.

Harrison [to Cisco]: Do you know how hard it has been to keep all of this from you? Especially from you? Because the truth is, I’ve grown quite fond of you, and in many ways you have shown me what it’s like to have a son. Forgive me, but to me you’ve been dead for centuries.

ConclusionDespite the cringe-inducing Iris/Barry drama, this was a jawdropping and momentous hour of television. Let’s hope everything doesn’t reset next week.

Chris RatingA

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Published by Chris Chedrawi

A computer science graduate hoping to write his own TV show one day, Chris is a regular guest reviewer on Nad's Reviews and is currently covering Will & Grace and The Americans, among other shows.
View all posts by Chris Chedrawi